- first thing that redknapp needs to do on monday morning is appoint a new captain. obviously ledley king cannot continue; corluka needs to come in at centre-back on a permanent basis. hutton plays in the right, chris gunter becomes his back-up. my guess, along with everyone else in the western world, is jonathan woodgate gets the armband.
this is one of the main benefits of bringing in a new man - if the existing pair of captains had been removed by the unpopular, failing incumbent, the dressing room would have been a mess; redknapp, alternatively, has the legitimacy and authority to remove them and place another in the leadership role.
- presumably, this signals the end of spurs' long-standing belief in the continental sporting director/coach set-up. at the beginning of the season, when questions began to be asked regarding such a system, redknapp was prominent in his opposition to it, the hackneyed old school manager through and through, throwing around worn out platitudes about "letting managers manage". there is absolutely no way arry signs up to work under a director of football, especially not after the velimir zejec and avram grant nonsense that he was subjected to previously.
obviously, i'm still of the belief that with most managers, a system incorporating player personnel staff with the authority to check the baseless indulgences and hunches of those foremost employed to coach is a good thing; i certainly do not want a handful of nugents, utakas, pamarots & kabouls further clogging up the spurs squad. this is not to say that the system is infallible - if the sporting director is incompetent, you just as easily end up with a squad full of rochas, boatengs and stalteris. but the idea that the qualities that allow managers to coach and motivate also allow them to judge the talent of players and assign an appropriate value, whilst being expected to carry out those other duties simultaneously, is not one i subscribe to. the sporting director, or personnel assistant, simply makes too much sense not to be used. obviously ferguson and wenger are exceptions, but as i have elaborated on previously, both have encouraged systems that benefit their recruitment abilities - ferguson learning the value of delegation and entrusting a great deal to assistants, whilst wenger has his network of super-scouts, headed up by the incomparable steve rowley, to handpick the best talents for his assessment. that is why they have better players. that is why they are better coaches.
we no longer play the 2-3-5 or the WM or even the 4-2-4. as the game changes, tactics have changed. why would recruitment be any different? why would the same rules apply for eternity as the system evolves into a different beast altogether?
what it means to manage has changed; those that fail to recognise that are doomed to mediocrity.
- i am interested to see who comes in as his assistant. arry has made it clear that tony adams will not follow, and joe jordan will be "making his own mind up" or something. this is clearly crucial.
- i am also interested to see what approach spurs take today and whether arry has any influence on the selection. clearly, along with the captaincy issue, arry needs to do a better job balancing the midfield, generating an appropriate level of support for the lone striker whilst retaining a better defensive element. no easy task. the best thing is that we don't have the playing staff to implement that godawful 3-5-2 he's been flirting with the season.
although saying that, gareth bale would probably be the ideal wingback.
uh oh.
- finally, the thing to watch in the coming months is the make-up of his preferred xi. clearly, some players will not be to his liking and will be shipped out in january; it can also be assumed that levy will again back his manager in the transfer market during the window, especially if spurs are still flailing around in the relegation zone. that arry knows the financial situation well at pompey might be something to remember - if rumours of financial difficulties are true, and his comments this morning about them needing to "sell the manager" are indicative of anything, then lassana diarra may be available at a decent price. and although the man may be reasonably objectionable, he would be an excellent addition to the spurs midfield. also worth a bet - what are the odds of him bringing back jermain defoe to white hart lane? defoe had a great relationship with the fans, was clearly fond of the place himself, and arry rates him; not entirely beyond the realms of possibility i think. also welcome - niko kranjcar. spurs need another attacking midfielder, and the croat would potentially be a good partner for the compatriot that will surely be the fulcrum of any spurs side under arry. (or at least should be the fulcrum of any spurs side under arry.)
so, thats all for now. i'm probably going to be watching some of chelsea liverpool and west ham arsenal later, so there may well be further ramblings in the coming hours.
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